Title:AHRQ National Research Service Awards (NRSA) Institutional Research Training
Grants (T32)

Note: The policies, guidelines
terms and conditions stated in this announcement may differ from those used by
the NIH.

Announcement
Type

This Funding
Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is a new RFA.

Request for
Applications (RFA) Number: RFA-HS-12-008

NOTICE:
Applications submitted in response to this Funding Opportunity Announcement
(FOA) for Federal assistance must be submitted electronically through
Grants.gov (http://www.grants.gov) using the SF424 Research
and Related (R&R) forms and the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide.

APPLICATIONS MAY NOT BE SUBMITTED IN PAPER FORMAT.

This FOA must be read in conjunction with the
application guidelines included with this announcement in Grants.gov/Apply
for Grants (hereafter called Grants.gov/Apply).

A registration process is necessary before submission
and applicants are highly encouraged to start the process at least four (4) weeks
prior to the grant submission date. See Section IV.

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
will award National Research Service Award (NRSA) Institutional Research
Training Grants (T32) to help ensure that a diverse pool of highly trained behavioral, social, and organizational sciences, engineering,
biostatistics, clinical sciences, and health services researchers are
available in adequate numbers and in appropriate research areas to advance the
scientific disciplines and to address the mission of AHRQ. The mission of AHRQ
is to improve the quality, safety, efficiency, and effectiveness of health care
for all Americans.

Purpose: The primary objective of these five-year
grants is to provide institutional support for the training of qualified pre-doctoral
and post-doctoral trainees for careers in behavioral,
social, and organizational sciences, economics, engineering,
mathematics/statistics, clinical sciences, and health services research. The
purpose of this program is to foster the development of researchers committed
to the generation, translation, and dissemination of new scientific evidence
and analytical tools that will be used to improve health care delivery in the United States.

Mechanism of Support: This Funding
Opportunity Announcement (FOA) will utilize the NRSA Institutional Research Training
Program (T32).

Funds Available and Anticipated Number of Awards: It
is anticipated that AHRQ will make approximately 12-18 awards for approximately
$7 million annually. Awards issued under this FOA are contingent
upon the availability of funds and the submission of a sufficient number of
meritorious applications. Because the nature and scope of the proposed
training program will vary from application to application, it is anticipated
that the size of each award may also vary. The total amount awarded and the
number of awards will depend upon the number, quality, and costs of the
applications received.

Budget and Project Period: The
total funds for a grant awarded under this FOA for Institutional Research
Training grant award mechanism must not exceed $600,000 per year for the five
year project/budget period. An application with a total award request
that exceeds $600,000 total costs in any given year or $3,000,000 total costs
over the five year project period will not undergo peer review.

Research Training Program Plan Component: Applicants
must follow the Supplemental Instructions to the SF424 (R&R) in Section 8.7
for preparing the Research Training Program Plan Component. The Research
Training Program Plan component is limited to 25 pages,
including tables, graphs, figures, diagrams and charts. This does not include
the Plan for Instruction in the Responsible Conduct of Research, which may not
exceed three pages.

Eligible Project Director/Principal Investigator (PD/PI): Individuals with the skills, knowledge, scientific expertise, and resources
necessary to develop and implement the proposed Institutional Research Training
program are invited to work with their institutions to develop an application
for support. Individuals from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups as well
as individuals with disabilities are always encouraged to apply (see Section
III).

Number of PD/PIs: Only one PD/PI may be
designated on the application.

Eligible Trainee Candidates: At the time of
appointment to the training program, pre-doctoral and post-doctoral candidates must
be citizens or non-citizen nationals of the United States, or must have been
lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence, i.e., in possession
of a currently valid Permanent Resident Card (USCIS Form I-551), or some other
legal verification of legal admission as a permanent resident.
Non-citizen nationals are generally persons born in outlying possessions of the
United States (e.g., American Samoa and Swains Island). Individuals on
temporary or student visas are not eligible for NRSA support. It is the grantee
institution’s responsibility to ensure that a trainee’s citizenship status at
the time of appointment meets these criteria. In addition, trainees must
be able to commit full-time effort in the program at the time of appointment. All
trainees are required to pursue their research training full time, normally
defined as 40 hours per week, or as specified by the sponsoring institution in
accordance with its own policies. Appointments are made in 12-month increments

Number of Applications: Applicant institutions
are strongly encouraged to collaborate internally with other components and
externally with other organizations. Applicant
organizations may submit more than one application, provided each application
is scientifically distinct. However, AHRQ will not accept similar grant
applications with essentially the same research focus from the same applicant
organization. Although more than one
application per institution and its affiliate components (e.g., health plans,
hospitals) may apply for support, AHRQ will generally support only one
application per institution and its affiliate organizations and components.

Resubmission(s): Resubmission applications are not permitted
in response to this FOA.

Renewals: Renewal applications are eligible.

Application Materials: See Section IV.1 for application materials.

General Information: For general information on SF424 (R&R) Application
and Electronic Submission, see these Web sites:

Hearing Impaired: Telecommunications for the hearing impaired are
available at: TTY 301-451-5936.

While grant awards are made to institutions rather than
individuals, this announcement and its instructions are written to inform
individual researchers of this funding opportunity and facilitate the
submission of grant applications by their organizations.

Required Application Instructions

It is critical that applicants follow the instructions in
the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide especially the Specific Instructions for
Institutional Training Grant Applications using the SF424 (R&R) Application
(beginning in Part 1., Section 8.4). Applicants must read and follow all
application instructions in the Application Guide as well as any
program-specific instructions noted below in Section IV of this announcement.
If program-specific instructions in Section IV deviate from those in the
Application Guide, follow the program-specific instructions. Applications
that do not comply with these instructions may not be accepted for review.

Through its NRSA Institutional Research
Training Grant Awards (T32), AHRQ plans to fund a broad array of health
services training programs focused on promoting improvements in clinical and
health systems’ practices. These training programs are designed to provide
didactic and/or experiential training for pre-doctoral and post-doctoral
trainees interested in: (1) improving clinical practice or the health care
system's ability to provide access to and deliver high quality, high-value
health care; and/or (2) providing policymakers with the ability to assess the
impact of system changes on outcomes, quality, access to, cost, and use of
health care services. 42 U.S.C. 299a(b) authorizes AHRQ to provide training
grants in the field of health services research.

Pressing health care
issues are complex and influenced by environmental, systemic, and demographic factors
that call for innovative approaches which integrate advances in behavioral,
social and organizational sciences, economics, engineering,
mathematics/statistics, clinical sciences, implementation sciences, and health services
research. In order to address these challenges, it is important to ensure that
a diverse and highly trained interdisciplinary research workforce is prepared
with the skills and knowledge necessary to conduct, disseminate, and implement
research that can be put into practice by consumers, health care providers,
policy makers and health care delivery system administrators.

Programs funded under
this FOA will recruit and train pre-doctoral and/or post-doctoral students in fields
such as social, behavioral and organizational sciences, economics, engineering,
mathematics/statistics, epidemiology, health policy, clinical sciences (e.g.,
Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy), implementation sciences, and health services
research. The requirements of this announcement are intended to be
sufficiently flexible to allow applicant institutions to tailor their proposed
training program to take advantage of the resources available to them and their
institutional strengths. The intent is to develop researchers in each program
who will work in a variety of settings and institutions.

Applications must be
responsive to AHRQ’s mission, which is to improve the quality, safety,
efficiency, and effectiveness of health care for all Americans. The
research sponsored and conducted by the Agency develops and presents scientific
evidence regarding all aspects of health care in the United States. It
addresses issues of organization, delivery, financing, utilization, patient and
provider behavior, outcomes, effectiveness and cost. It evaluates both
clinical services and the system in which these services are provided.
These scientific results improve the evidence base to enable better decisions
about health care, including such areas as: disease prevention; appropriate use
of medical technologies; care coordination, care management, enhancing access
to care, patient self-management; palliative care; improving diagnosis,
treatment, patient access, and work flow while reducing costs or holding them
constant; long-term care; reducing disparities in health care outcomes and
quality among racial, ethnic, and underserved populations; enhancing the
transparency and accountability of care delivery practices and outcomes; and contributing
to evidence-based decision making by patients, providers, regulators, and
payers. AHRQ is especially interested in applications that propose to train
researchers to address healthcare disparities and quality measurement and
improvement. Applicants are strongly encouraged to focus on topical areas
unique to AHRQ, demonstrating how expected results can be used or made
available for use to enhance healthcare quality. Results should be
directly relevant to stakeholders, such as providers and practitioners,
administrators, payers, consumers, policymakers, and insurers. The
strategic research goals are:

Safety/quality – Reduce the risk of harm from health care services
by promoting the delivery of appropriate care that achieves the best
quality outcomes

Effectiveness – Assure that providers and consumers/patients use
beneficial and timely health care information to make informed decision choices.

AHRQ also
has specific research portfolio areas of interest which include comparative
effectiveness/patient-centered outcomes, health information technology (health
IT), value, patient safety, prevention and care management, and healthcare
innovations. To learn more
about AHRQ’s focus within these portfolios of work, please visit http://www.ahrq.gov/fund/portfolio.htm

Applicants are required
to address training in research issues critical to AHRQ
priority populations, including: individuals living in inner city and rural
(including frontier) areas; low-income and minority groups; women, children,
the elderly; and individuals with special health care needs, including those
with disabilities and those who need chronic or end-of-life health care.

Trainees must focus
their research development and projects on health care delivery in the United
States.

This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) will use
the Institutional Research Training Grant Mechanism (T32). The PD/PI will be solely responsible for planning,
directing, and executing his or her training program

AHRQ is not using the Modular Grant Application and Award
Process.Applications submitted in modular format will not be reviewed.

2.
Funds Available

Because the nature and scope of
the proposed research will vary from application to application, it is
anticipated that the size and duration of each award will also vary. Although
the financial plans of AHRQ provide support for this program, awards pursuant
to this funding opportunity are contingent upon the availability of funds and
the submission of a sufficient number of meritorious applications. Facilities
and administrative (F&A) costs requested by applicants are included in the
total cost limitation.

AHRQ intends to allocate approximately $7 million
annually for five years of support to fund 12 to 18 programs. The total costs for
a grant requested under this FOA will not exceed $600,000 annually for the
entire project period. Funding beyond the first year will be contingent upon a
review and acceptance by Agency staff of the noncompeting annual progress
report. An application with a budget request that exceeds $600,000 in total
costs in any given year or that exceeds five years in duration will not be
reviewed.

Allowable Costs

A. Stipends:

Stipends are provided as a subsistence allowance for trainees to
help defray living expenses during the research training experience and
are based on a 12-month appointment period. The stipend is not
provided as a condition of employment with either the Federal Government
or the grantee institution nor is it to be considered a payment for
services performed. Stipends will be based on the annual stipend
levels in effect at the time of award. Stipends may be adjusted only
at the time of appointment or reappointment and may not be changed in the
middle of an appointment period. No departure from the established
stipend schedule may be negotiated by the institution with the trainee. Current
stipend level information can be found on the following link http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-12-033.html

Applicants should estimate stipend levels based on
justifiable projections and needs.

B. Tuition and Fees:

AHRQ will provide funds for tuition and fees for eligible NRSA trainees.
At present, the formulas for predoctoral and postdoctoral trainees are listed
below:

The amount awarded for tuition and fees will be
based on the following formulas: 60 percent of each requested pre-doctoral
trainee’s tuition and fees up to a cap of $16,000 direct costs annually. The
requested level of tuition and fees may not exceed the applicant’s actual
tuition and fees.

At the post-doctoral level, tuition and fees will be 60% of each eligible
post-doctoral trainee’s tuition and fees up to a cap of $4,500 direct
costs per year, or $16,000 direct costs per year for those in formal
degree-granting programs. The requested
level of tuition and fees may not exceed the applicant’s actual tuition
and fees.

Costs associated with tuition and fees are allowable only if they are
required for specific courses as part of the approved research training program
and are applied consistently to all persons in a similar research training
status at the institution regardless of the source of support. Tuition at
the post-doctoral level is limited to that required for specific courses in
support of the approved training program which should be identified in the
application

Applicants should note that these formulas are for budgeting
and award calculation purposes. Grantees are to state full tuition and
fee costs in the budget justification, then show the tuition formula
calculation to determine the appropriate amount to be included in the budget
request. Note that if the applicant’s actual tuition rates differ for in-state
vs. out-of-state trainees, and/or for pre-doctoral vs. post-doctoral trainees,
these different rates must be clearly stated, even if the current request does
not include trainees with differing tuition rates. The final determination of
eligible support from AHRQ will be applied at the time of award.

”Trainee Costs” include funds awarded in the stipends and
tuition/fees budget categories. These costs may not be used for other purposes
and therefore may not be re-budgeted into other budget categories such as
travel or Training Related Expenses. Unless otherwise restricted, re-budgeting
into or within Trainee Costs (stipends and tuition/fees) is allowable without
prior approval of AHRQ.

C. Trainee Travel:

Applicants may request up to $2,000 travel funds annually
per trainee. Priority for use of these funds must be given to attendance at
the Annual AHRQ NRSA Conference. Compliance must be documented annually in the
Noncompeting Continuation report. It is expected that the number of positions
supported annually by each T32 Institutional Research Training Program will
coincide with the number of trainees attending the conference annually. Exceptions
can be requested in advance for individual and infrequent circumstances such as
the following: clinical responsibilities, exam schedule, personal emergencies.

If funds are prioritized so that the same number of
trainees supported by the program annually is equal to the number attending the
annual NRSA/AHRQ Research Trainees Conference, or an individual exception has
been granted, remaining travel funds can be used to support other professional
travel to scientific meetings and workshops that the institution determines to
be necessary to the training experience.

Funds may not be expended to cover the costs of travel
between the trainee’s place of residence and the training institution, except
in cases of extreme hardship.

D.Training Related Expenses (TRE):

Funds provided as Training Related Expenses are intended to help defray
other research training expenses such as staff salaries, consultant costs,
equipment, research-related costs, and faculty/staff travel directly related to
the research training program. Training Related Expenses also include
health insurance coverage for individuals and/or families, but only to the
extent that the same health insurance fees are charged to regular
non-Federally-supported students and postdoctoral fellows. Current TRE support
per pre-doctoral trainee is $4,200, and per post-doctoral trainee is $7,850. Funds
are provided as a lump sum on the basis of the number of trainees supported. No
further itemization or explanation is required.

E.Facilities and Administrative Allowance:

Facilities and administrative costs based on 8% of modified total direct
costs (excluding tuition/fees and expenditures for equipment) may be requested
and are included in the total cost cap of the award.

F.Stipend Supplementation, Compensation, and Other Income:

AHRQ Institutional Research Training
Program trainees receive stipends to defray living expenses. Stipends
may be supplemented by an institution from non-Federal funds provided this
supplementation is without any additional obligation to the trainee. An
institution can determine the amount of stipend supplementation, if any, it
will provide according to its own formally established policies governing
stipend support. These policies must be consistently applied to all
individuals in a similar status regardless of the source of funds. Federal
funds may not be used for stipend supplementation unless specifically
authorized under the terms of the program from which funds are derived. Under
no circumstances may PHS funds be used for supplementation.

AHRQ recognizes trainees may seek part-time
employment incidental to their training program to offset their expenses. Funds
characterized as compensation may be paid to fellows only when there is an
employer-employee relationship, the payments are for services rendered, and the
situation otherwise meets the conditions for compensation of students. In
addition, compensation must be in accordance with organizational policies
applied consistently to both federally and non-federally supported activities
and must be supported by acceptable accounting records that reflect the
employer-employee relationship. Under these conditions, the funds provided as
compensation (salary, fringe benefits, and/or tuition remission) for services
rendered, such as teaching or laboratory assistance, are not considered stipend
supplementation; they are allowable charges to Federal grants, including PHS
research grants.

Compensation may not be paid from a research grant that supports the same
research that is part of the trainees’ planned training. Compensated services
should occur on a limited, part-time basis apart from the normal full-time
research training activities.

Under no circumstances may the conditions of stipend supplementation or the
services provided for compensation interfere with, detract from, or prolong the
trainees approved AHRQ Institutional Research Training program.

Program Directors must approve part-time employment on research grants to
verify that the circumstances will not detract from or prolong the approved
training program for the trainee.

G. Educational Loans or G.I. Bill:

An individual may make use of Federal educational loan funds and
assistance under the Veterans Readjustment Benefits Act (G.I. Bill). Such
funds are not considered supplementation or compensation.

You may
submit an application(s) if your institution/organization has any of the
following characteristics:

Public or non-profit private institution, such as a
university, college, or a faith-based or community-based organization;

Units of local or State government;

Indian/Native American Tribal Government (Federally
Recognized);

Indian/Native American Tribal Government (Other than
Federally Recognized);

Indian/Native American Tribally Designated Organizations.

AHRQ’s authorizing legislation does not allow for-profit organizations
to be eligible to lead applications under this research mechanism. For-profit
organizations may participate in projects as members of consortia or as
subcontractors only. Applications submitted by for-profit organizations or foreign
institutions will not be reviewed. Organizations described in section
501(c) 4 of the Internal Revenue Code that engage in lobbying are not eligible.

AHRQ encourages institutions that have not previously
received support from AHRQ to apply. Applicants are encouraged to develop
partnerships with entities such as ACTION, CERTS, DEcIDE Network, EPCS, PBRNS,
health care plans, state and local governments, VA Medical Centers and other
applied settings. Seasoned behavioral sciences, engineering,
mathematics/statistics, clinical sciences, and health services research
training programs are also strongly encouraged to partner with multiple
components at their existing institutions, with newly emerging behavioral
sciences, engineering, mathematics/statistics, clinical sciences, and health
services research training programs at other institutions and with emerging
centers of excellence.

HHS grants policy requires that the grant recipient perform a substantive
role in the conduct of the planned project or program activity and not merely
serve as a conduit of funds to another party or parties. If
consortium/contractual activities represent a significant portion of the
overall project, the applicant must justify why the applicant organization,
rather than the party(s) performing this portion of the overall project, should
be the grantee and what substantive role the applicant organization will play. Justification
can be provided in the Specific Aims or Research Strategy section of the PHS398
Research Training Program Plan Component sections of the SF424 (R&R)
application. There is no budget allocation guideline for determining
substantial involvement; determination of substantial involvement is based on a
review of the primary project activities for which grant support is provided
and the organization(s) that will be performing those activities.

1.B.
Eligible Individuals

Any individual with the skills, knowledge, and resources
necessary to carry out the proposed research training program as the PD/PI is
invited to work with his/her organization to develop an application for
support. Individuals from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups as well as
individuals with disabilities are always encouraged to apply for AHRQ support.

The Program Director, who will be the PD/PI for the grant
application, should be an established health services researcher with a
successful past training record, and available resources to conduct the
proposed training program at the institution. The Program Director will be
responsible for the selection and appointment of eligible trainees to the
Institutional Research Training Grants, for the overall direction, management
and administration of the institutional research training program, program
evaluation, and the submission of all required forms and reports in a timely
manner.

2. Cost
Sharing or Matching

This program
does not require cost sharing for applications in response to this FOA.

While there is no cost sharing requirement included in
this FOA, AHRQ welcomes applicant institutions, including any collaborating
institutions, to devote resources to this effort. An indication of
institutional support from the applicant and its collaborators indicates a
greater potential of success and sustainability of the project. Examples of
institutional support would include: donated equipment and space, institutional
funded staff time and effort, or other resource investments. Applicant institutions
that plan to provide support should indicateinstitutional support by
outlining the specific contributions to the project and providing assurances
that their organization and any collaborators are committed to providing these
funds and resources to the project. This can be included at the end of the
budget justification section of the application, but institutional support
dollars are not to be included in the detailed budget request.

3. Other Special
Eligibility Criteria

Mentors

Mentors should be recognized as accomplished
investigators in health services research or other closely related fields and
have track records of success in providing the types of training activities and
mentoring experiences required for the proposed training program. Where
feasible, women, individuals from diverse race and ethnic groups, and
individuals with disabilities should be involved as mentors to serve as role
models.

Trainees

The individual to be trained must be a citizen or a noncitizen national
of the United States or have been lawfully admitted for permanent residence at
the time of appointment, i.e., in possession of a currently valid Alien
Registration Receipt Card I-551, or some other legal verification of legal
admission as a permanent resident. Non-citizen nationals are generally
persons born in outlying possessions of the United States (e.g., American Samoa and Swains Island). Individuals on temporary or student visas are not
eligible for NRSA support. It is the grantee institution’s responsibility to
ensure that a trainee’s citizenship status at the time of appointment meets
these criteria. In addition, trainees must be able to commit full-time
effort in the program at the time of appointment.

All trainees are required to pursue their research training full time,
normally defined as 40 hours per week, or as specified by the sponsoring
institution in accordance with its own consistently-applied policies.
Appointments are normally made in 12-month increments, and no trainee may be
appointed for less than 9 months during the initial period of appointment.

Pre-doctoral trainees
must have received a baccalaureate degree by the beginning date of their AHRQ Institutional
Research Training grant appointment, must be training at the post-baccalaureate
level, and be enrolled in a program leading to a Ph.D. (or its equivalent)
doctoral degree program related to or applied to the mission of AHRQ. Students
in doctoral health-professional programs or individuals in postgraduate
clinical training leading to a doctoral degree, who wish to interrupt their
studies for a year or more to engage in full-time research training before completing
their formal training programs, are also eligible.

No individual trainee
may receive more than 5 years of any type of NRSA support at the pre-doctoral
level, including any combination of support from institutional training or
individual fellowship awards. Any exception to the maximum period of
support requires a waiver from AHRQ based on a review of the written
justification from the individual trainee, and endorsed by the PD/PI and the
sponsoring grantee institution. Trainees seeking additional support are
strongly advised to consult with the AHRQ since this is extremely rare.

Post-doctoral trainees
must have received, as of the beginning date of the NRSA appointment, a Ph.D., Sc.D.,
Dr.P.H., M.D., D.D.S., Pharm.D., D.O., or comparable doctoral degree from an
accredited domestic or foreign institution. Eligible doctoral degrees include,
but are not limited to, the following: D.M.D., D.C., D.O., D.V.M., O.D.,
D.P.M., Sc.D., Eng.D., Dr. P.H., D.N.Sc., D.P.T., Pharm.D., N.D. (Doctor of Naturopathy), D.S.W., Psy.D, as well as a doctoral degree in nursing
research. Documentation by an authorized official of the degree-granting
institution certifying all degree requirements have been met prior to the
beginning date of the training appointment is required.

Within the full-time
training period, research trainees who are also training as clinicians must
devote their time to the proposed research training and must confine clinical
duties to those that are an integral part of the research training experience.
The program may not be used to support studies leading to the M.D., D.D.S., or
other clinical, health-professional training except when those studies are part
of a formal combined research degree program, such as the M.D./Ph.D. Similarly,
trainees may not accept NRSA support for clinical training that is part of
residency training leading to clinical certification in a medical or dental
specialty or subspecialty. It is permissible and encouraged, however, for
clinicians to engage in NRSA-supported full-time post-doctoral research
training even when that experience is creditable toward certification by a
clinical specialty or subspecialty board

No individual trainee
may receive more than 3 years of any type of NRSA support at the post-doctoral
level, including any combination of support from institutional training or
individual fellowship awards. Any exception to the maximum period of
support requires a waiver from AHRQ based on a review of the written
justification from the individual trainee, and endorsed by the PD/PI and the
sponsoring grantee institution. Trainees seeking additional support are
strongly advised to consult with AHRQ staff, since this is extremely rare.

Section IV. Application and Submission Information

To
download a SF424 (R&R) Application Package and SF424 (R&R) Application
Guide for completing the SF424 (R&R) forms for this FOA, use the “Apply for
Grant Electronically” button in this FOA or link to http://www.grants.gov/Apply/ and follow the directions provided on that Web site.

Registration:

Appropriate registrations with
Grants.gov and eRA Commons must be completed on or before the due date in order
to successfully submit an application. Several of the steps of the
registration process could take four to six weeks. Therefore, applicants
should immediately check with their business official to determine whether
their organization/institution is already registered with both Grants.gov and the Commons.
All registrations must be complete by the submission deadline for the
application to be considered “on-time” (see 3.C.1 for more information about
on-time submission).

A
one-time registration is required for institutions/organizations at both:

The individual designated as PD/PI on the application must be
registered also in the NIH eRA Commons.

The PD/PI must hold a PD/PI account in the Commons. Applicants
should not share a Commons account for both an Authorized Organization
Representative/Signing Official (AOR/SO) role and a PD/PI role; however,
if they have both a PD/PI role and an NIH Internet Assisted Review (IAR)
role, both roles should exist under one Commons account.

The PD/PI at the applicant organization must be affiliated with
that organization. A PD/PI located at another institution need not be
affiliated with the applicant organization, but must be affiliated with
their own organization to be able to access the Commons.

This registration/affiliation must be done by the AOR/SO or his/her
designee who is already registered in the Commons.

Both
the PD/PI and AOR/SO need separate accounts in the NIH eRA Commons since both
are authorized to view the application image.

Note: The registration process is not
sequential. Applicants should begin the registration processes for both
Grants.gov and eRA Commons as soon as their organization has obtained a DUNS
number. Only one DUNS number is required and the same DUNS number must be
referenced when completing Grants.gov registration, eRA Commons registration
and the SF424 (R&R) forms.

1. Request Application Information

Applicants
must download the SF424 (R&R) application forms and the SF424 (R&R)
Application Guide for this FOA through Grants.gov/Apply.

Note: Only the forms package directly attached to a
specific FOA can be used. You will not be able to use any other SF424 (R&R)
forms (e.g., sample forms, forms from another FOA), although some of the
"Attachment" files may be useable for more than one FOA.

Prepare
all applications using the SF424 (R&R) application forms for this FOA
throughGrants.gov/Applyand in accordance
with the SF424
(R&R) Application Guide (http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/424/index.htm).
Applicants must also follow the Supplemental Instructions
to the SF424 (R&R) in Section 8.7 for preparing the Research Training
Program Plan Component. Applicants must also follow program-specific
instructions noted in Section IV of the FOA. If program-specific instructions
in Section IV deviate from those in the Application Guide, the program-specific
instructions must be followed.

Some
fields within the SF424 (R&R) application components, although not marked
as mandatory, are required by AHRQ (e.g., the “Credential” log-in field of
the “Research & Related Senior/Key Person Profile” component must contain
the PD/PI’s assigned eRA Commons User ID). Agency-specific instructions for
such fields are clearly identified in the Application Guide. For additional
information, see “Frequently Asked Questions – Application Guide, Electronic Submission of Grant Applications.”

The
SF424 (R&R) application has several components. Some components are
required, others are optional. The forms package associated with this FOA in Grants.gov/APPLYincludes all
applicable components, required and optional. A completed application in
response to this FOA includes the data in the following components:

When
a single institution is involved, follow the instructions contained in the
SF424 (R&R) Application Guide.

Applications
Involving Multiple Institutions

When multiple institutions are involved, one institution
must be designated as the prime institution and funding for the other
institution(s) must be requested via a third party agreement to be administered
by the prime institution. When submitting a detailed budget, the prime
institution should submit its budget using the Research & Related Budget
component. All other institutions should have their individual budgets
attached separately to the Research & Related Subaward Budget Attachment(s)
Form. See Section 4.8 of the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide for further
instruction regarding the use of the subaward budget form.

To allow AHRQ staff to estimate the potential
peer review workload and plan the review (e.g., anticipate the nature of
reviewer expertise to be required), prospective applicants may submit a letter
of intent that includes an acknowledgement of interest in this funding
opportunity (please refer to the number and title of this funding opportunity),
a few comments on the subject of the proposed research, background expertise of
key personnel, and the nature and role of participating institutions.
Please include the name and email address of the Principal Investigator.

This letter of intent is not required, is not binding,
and is not considered in the review of a subsequent application. However,
these letters are administratively very helpful, as indicated above. To be
most useful, the letter of intent is to be sent by the date listed above and at
the beginning of this document.

The letter of intent can be sent electronically, and
should be sent to:

In order to expedite
the review, applicants are requested to notify the AHRQReferral Office by email Gerald.Calderone@ahrq.hhs.govwhen the application has been
submitted. Please include the FOA number and title, PD/PI name, and
title of the application

3.C. Application Processing

Applications
must be received on or before the application receipt date described
above (Section IV.3.A). If an application is received after that date, the
application may be delayed in the review process or not reviewed.

There will be an
acknowledgement of receipt of applications from Grants.gov and the Commons. The
submitting AOR/SO receives the Grants.gov acknowledgments. The AOR/SO and the
PI receive Commons acknowledgments. Information on the status of an
application should be checked by the Principal Investigator in the eRA Commons
at: https://commons.era.nih.gov/commons/.

Upon receipt,
applications will be evaluated for completeness by the Center for Scientific
Review, NIH, and AHRQ. Incomplete and/or non-responsive applications will
not be reviewed.

AHRQ
will not accept any application in response to this funding opportunity that is
essentially the same as one currently pending initial review in the PHS, unless
the applicant withdraws the pending application. However, when a previously
unfunded application, originally submitted as an investigator-initiated
application, is to be submitted in response to a funding opportunity, it is to
be prepared as a NEW application. That is, the application for the funding
opportunity must not include an “Introduction” describing the changes and
improvements made, and the text must not be marked to indicate the changes from
the previous unfunded version of the application.

For efficient grant administration, AHRQ
grant administration procedures will be used and conducted in accordance with
the terms and conditions, cost principles, and other considerations described
in the HHS Grants Policy Statement. The Grants Policy Statement can be found at http://www.ahrq.gov/fund/hhspolicy.htm

Pre-Award Costs: Pre-Award Costs are not allowable charges for either
stipends or tuition on institutional training grants since stipends and tuition
costs may not be charged to the grant before the trainee appointment is
actually made.

Concurrent awards: A NRSA appointment may not be held concurrently
with another federally sponsored fellowship, traineeship, or similar Federal
award that provides a stipend or otherwise duplicates provisions of the NRSA.

Taxability of Stipends: Section 117 of the Internal Revenue Code
applies to the tax treatment of scholarships and fellowships. Degree candidates
may exclude from gross income (for tax purposes) any amount used for course
tuition and related expenses such as fees, books, supplies, and equipment
required for courses of instruction at a qualified educational organization.
Nondegree candidates are required to report as gross income any monies paid on
their behalf for stipends or any course tuition and fees required for
attendance.

The taxability of stipends in no way alters the relationship
between NRSA recipients and sponsoring institutions. NRSA stipends are not
considered salaries. In addition, NRSA trainees are not considered to be in an
employee-employer relationship with AHRQ or the sponsoring institution solely
as a result of the NRSA award. The interpretation and implementation of the tax
laws are the domain of the IRS and the courts. AHRQ takes no position on what
the status may be for a particular taxpayer, and it does not have the authority
to dispense tax advice. Individuals should consult their local IRS office about
the applicability of the law to their situation and for information on their
tax obligations.

Service Payback: As specified in the NIH Revitalization Act of 1993,
Public Law 103-32, T32 Institutional Research Training Grant recipients incur a
service payback obligation for the first 12 months of post-doctoral support with
the 13th and subsequent months of postdoctoral support serving to
pay back this obligation month by month.

The applicant
organization must include its DUNS number in its Organization Profile in the
eRA Commons. This DUNS number must match the DUNS number provided at CCR
registration with Grants.gov. For
additional information, see “Frequently Asked Questions – Application Guide, Electronic
Submission of Grant Applications.”

PHS398
Research Training Program Plan Sections

All application
instructions outlined in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide that are not
otherwise specified within this Funding Opportunity Announcement are to be
followed, incorporating "Just-in-Time" information concepts.

Special Application
Requirements for this FOA

Page Limitations

Research Training ProgramPlan-- SF 424 (R&R), under Section 8.7 - Research
Training Program Plan Component: combined components 2.2 (Background), 2.3
(Program Plan), and 2.4 (Recruitment and Retention Plan to Enhance Diversity)
is limited to 25 pages. Any discussion of specific aims must be
included within the 25-page limit.

Note that the required
plans for instruction in the Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) will have
page limits separate from the page limits for the Research Training Program
Plan Component. Applications without plans for instruction in responsible
conduct of research will be considered incomplete and will not be
reviewed. Specifically, the plan for instruction in RCR (Item 2.5) will
have its own separate page limit (3 pages).

Instructions for completing the data tables for an Institutional
Research Training grant application can be found at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/424/index.htm#DataTableInstruct.
These tables do not count toward the 25-page limitation of the Research
Training Program Plan. Tables other than those listed should not be
included, unless they pertain to the Research Training Program Plan and then
should be part of the 25-page limit for that section.

Training Program and Environment (Component of Program
Plan)

The application must include a statement from the
applicant institution (institutional letterhead and signature) describing the
commitment to the planned program. The institution must assure that essential
time will be allowed for the Training PD/PI, other faculty and mentors, and
note what the time commitment of the PD/PI would be. The program must include
information on planned didactic as well as applied and experiential research training,
based on trainees’ varying levels of experience and needs. Information about
planned courses, core competencies to be delivered and the manner in which they
will be assessed, curricula, seminars, workshops or tutorials that will be
incorporated into the training program should be included in the application.
In addition, the plan must describe mentoring plans or contracts, and individuals
who will be available to serve as primary (key) mentors in the program.

The program should develop trainees’ skills in:
understanding research; conducting research that is relevant and applicable to
health care delivery and/or policy; identifying problems in the process of
conducting research; and raising questions and proposing solutions to resolving
complex problems within the field of health services research. Trainees should
be prepared to utilize their research education as a springboard to their future
research careers. Programs should provide all trainees with additional
professional development skills and career guidance including instruction and
training in grant writing, the protection of human subjects, interdisciplinary
team work, and communication of research to researchers and the impact of their
research to stakeholders invested in the applications of their research.

The application should describe the collaborative
environment and infrastructure available for interdisciplinary training. Evidence
of this infrastructure could include collaborative research projects,
co-authored publication, joint service on dissertation committees,
collaborative teaching, and regular interactions in journal clubs and seminars.
For a successful program, it is expected that special efforts will be made to
integrate the science and the trainees into a cohesive program where there is
close and constant interchange of ideas, information, mentorship and an array
of applied and experiential training experiences.

A description of any proposed rotations/practicum
in health services research which will be made available for each trainee
should be included in the training plan. These are not required, but are highly
encouraged. They should be designed to take advantage of health services
research experiences not available at, but complementary to, those at the
applicant institution. If proposed rotations/practicum is included in the plan,
documentation of commitment on the part of the stakeholder group(s) should be included
in the application, as a separate attachment in the appendices.

The application must describe a training program that is
scientifically distinct from other existing institutional research training
programs funded by NIH or HRSA. Training programs must be unique to AHRQ and
AHRQ’s mission and research priorities, as outlined above.

Program
Faculty (Component of Program Plan)

Applicants need to demonstrate the suitability of the
Program Director, mentors, and key faculty; their availability; their roles;
and their responsiveness to students. The application must include information about the
program faculty who will be available to serve as mentors and provide guidance
and expertise to trainees proposed in the application. It must also describe
the complementary expertise and experiences of the proposed mentors, including
active research and other trainee activities in which the mentors are engaged,
as well as track records of mentoring and training. A description of specific
mentoring plans and commitment of major faculty and external non-academic
partners in the specific research objective areas proposed is also required and
their input should be demonstrated in the application. The faculty should have
experience in specific methodological and topical areas related to behavioral sciences, engineering, mathematics/statics,
clinical sciences, and health services research. Sufficient staff and
facilities are also required in order to carry out the proposed program,
including such items as computers, office space, data, and data
processing/analytic support.

Program
Evaluation (Component of Program Plan)

The application must include a formative and outcome
evaluation plan that involves external input and addresses both the academic
program offered and the outcomes as evidenced in the career paths and
trajectories of trainees. This should include plans to obtain feedback from
current and former trainees to help identify strengths and weaknesses and to
provide suggestions for program improvements. Evidence of a productive health
services career can include a record of successful competition for research
grants/contracts, receipt of special honors or awards, a record of
publications, non-traditional academic measures of success (e.g., use of
research by stakeholders), promotions, and any other accepted measures of
success consistent with the nature and duration of the training period and
program emphasis.

The plan should include a system for tracking
participants for at least a 10-year period following program completion.
Evaluation results should be included in future competing continuation
(renewal) applications and as part of the Final Progress Report. For competing
renewals, appendices are encouraged to include summaries of previous formative
and outcome evaluations describing the above criteria.

Trainee
Candidates (Component of Program Plan)

The application must include a plan for recruiting and
retaining high quality trainees from outside as well as inside applicant
institutions. The plan should describe any recruitment and outreach plans to
increase the depth and diversity of the applicant pool. The plan should
guarantee existence of an adequate group of highly-qualified potential
candidates available to embark on at least a two-year commitment to institutional
research training in behavioral sciences, engineering, mathematics/statistics,
clinical sciences, and health services research that is responsive to AHRQ’s
research priorities and mission. The application should describe the criteria
to be used for candidate evaluation and selection. It should provide brief
summaries of training plans that the program will employ. The application
should contain a description of how the training plans will be tailored to the
needs of the prospective candidates, taking into account their past experiences
and competencies, and should distinguish the plan from fellowship training (if
applicable).

Recruitment Plan to Enhance
Diversity

AHRQ recognizes a unique and
compelling need to promote diversity in the behavioral sciences, engineering,
mathematics/statistics, clinical and health services research workforce. AHRQ
expects efforts to diversify the workforce to lead to the recruitment of the
most talented researchers from all groups; to improve the quality of the educational
and training environment; to balance and broaden the perspective in setting
research priorities; to improve the ability to recruit subjects from diverse
backgrounds into clinical research protocols; and to improve the health care in
the United States.

Accordingly, AHRQ continues to
encourage institutions to diversify their student and faculty populations and
thus to increase the participation of individuals currently underrepresented in
the behavioral/ social, and organizational sciences, engineering, economics, mathematics/statistics
clinical sciences and health services research such as: individuals from
underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, individuals with disabilities, and
individuals from socially, culturally, economically, or educationally
disadvantaged backgrounds. Institutions are encouraged to identify
candidates who will increase diversity on a national or institutional basis. The recruitment plan must include specific
efforts designed to enhance diversity. If an application is received without a
plan that specifically addresses efforts to enhance diversity, the application
will be considered incomplete and will not be reviewed.

Training in the Responsible Conduct of Research

Every trainee supported by this
training grant must receive instruction in the responsible conduct of research.
All applications must include a plan to provide such instruction. The plan
must address five components: format; subject matter; faculty participation;
duration of instruction; and frequency of instruction. Training in the
responsible conduct of research is described in NOT-OD-10-019. Renewal (Type 2)
applications must, in addition, describe changes in formal instruction over the
past project period and plans for the future that address any weaknesses in the
current instruction plan. All training faculty who served as course
directors, speakers, lecturers, and/or discussion leaders during the past
project period must be named in the application. Applications lacking a
plan for instruction in responsible conduct of research will be considered
incomplete and may be delayed in the review process. The background,
rationale and more detail about instruction in the responsible conduct of
research can be found in NOT-OD-10-019. See SF424, Section
8.7. Research Training Program Plan Components, Item 5, Plan for Instruction in
the Responsible Conduct of Research.

Other: Applications lacking a recruitment plan, an evaluation
and tracking plan, a plan for training in the responsible conduct of research,
or a description of institutional commitment to the program and to the trainee
candidates will be considered incomplete and will not be
reviewed.

Number of Applications: Applicant
organizations are strongly encouraged to collaborate internally and externally
with organizations. Applicant organizations may submit
more than one application, provided each application
is scientifically distinct. However, AHRQ will not accept similar grant
applications with essentially the same research focus from the same applicant
organization. Although more than one application per institution and its
affiliate components (e.g., health plans, hospitals)
may apply for support, AHRQ will generally support only one application per
institution.

Resubmission(s): Resubmission applications are not permitted
in response to this FOA.

Renewals: Competing renewals are allowable.

Budget
Component

Special
Instructions for Modular Grant applications

AHRQ is not using the Modular Grant
Application and Award Process. Applicants for funding from AHRQ
should ignore application instructions concerning the Modular Grant Application
and Award Process. Applications submitted in the Modular format will not be
reviewed.

Warning: Please be sure to observe the total cost, project
period, and page number limitations specified above for this FOA. Application
processing may be delayed or the application may be rejected if it does not
comply with these requirements.

Applicants should
follow the specific instructions on the Training Budget as described in the
SF424 (R&R) instructions for the PHS 398 Training Budget, Section 8.5. A
detailed budget justification must be provided.

Appendix
Materials

Applicants must follow the specific instructions
on Appendix materials as described in the SF424 (R&R) instructions of the
Research Training Program Plan Component, Section 8.7. For competing renewals,
appendices are encouraged to include summaries of previous formative and
outcome evaluations, as noted above. These materials can be used toward the
evaluation of the past performance of the program.

Do not use the appendix to circumvent the page limitations
of the Research Training Program Plan. All appendix material must be submitted
as PDF attachments. A summary listing all of the items included in the
appendix is required, and should be the first PDF file of the Appendix.
Applications that do not follow the appendix requirements may be delayed in the
review process.

Note the required Data Tables, described above, must not be included in
the appendix materials.

Other
Requirements

Priority Populations

The Healthcare Research and Quality Act of 1999, in
amending the Public Health Service Act, directed AHRQ, in carrying out its
mission, to conduct and support research and evaluations, and to support
demonstration projects, with respect to the delivery of health care in
inner-city and rural areas (including frontier areas), and health care for
priority populations. Priority populations include low income groups; minority
groups; women; children; the elderly; and individuals with special health care
needs, including individuals with disabilities and individuals who need chronic
care or end-of-life health care. This authority is found at 42 USC
299(c). To implement this statutory mandate, AHRQ published a Notice in
the NIH Guide on February 28, 2003, establishing a new Agency policy on the
Inclusion of Priority Populations in health services research (see http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-HS-03-010.html).
Applicants under this FOA should consider and discuss including priority
populations in the research design as specified in this Notice. AHRQ policy
also requires that women and members of minority groups be included in all
AHRQ-supported research projects involving human subjects, unless a clear and
compelling rationale and justification is provided that inclusion is
inappropriate with respect to the health of the subjects or the purpose of the
research.

Publication Transmittal: General AHRQ Requirements

In keeping with the Agency's efforts to translate the
results of AHRQ-funded research into practice and policy, grantees are to
inform the AHRQ Office of Communications and Knowledge Transfer (OCKT) when
articles from their AHRQ-supported activities are accepted for publication in
the professional literature. Grantees should also discuss any ideas about
other dissemination and marketing efforts with OCKT staff. The goal is to
ensure that efforts to disseminate research findings are coordinated with other
Agency activities to maximize awareness and application of the research by
potential users, including clinicians, patients, health care systems and
purchasers and policymakers. This is critical when outreach to the
general and trade press is involved. Accordingly, contact with the media
will take place with close coordination between OCKT and the press offices of
the grantee's institutions. In cases when products are created (such as
annual or final reports, Web-based tools, CD-ROMs), grantees will be asked to
submit to OCKT a brief plan describing how the product will be
publicized. An OCKT staff person will be assigned to each product and
will coordinate the implementation of the plan, especially issues related to
printing and electronic dissemination, and outreach to the media.

Assessment of AHRQ Grant Programs

In carrying out its stewardship of research programs,
AHRQ may request information essential to an assessment of the effectiveness of
Agency research programs. Accordingly, grant recipients are hereby
notified that they may be contacted after the completion of awards for periodic
updates on publications resulting from AHRQ grant awards, and other information
helpful in evaluating the impact of AHRQ-sponsored research.

AHRQ expects grant recipients to keep the Agency informed
of publications, as well as the known uses and impact of their Agency-sponsored
research. Applicants must agree to notify AHRQ immediately when a manuscript
based on research supported by the grant is accepted for publication, and to
provide the expected date of publication as soon as it is known, regardless of
whether or not the grant award is still active.

HCUP & MEPS

Applicants are encouraged to make use of
AHRQ’S Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) or the Medical
Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS). HCUP is a family of health care
databases and related software tools and products developed through a
Federal-State-Industry partnership. HCUP databases bring together the
data collection efforts of State data organizations, hospital associations, private
data organizations, and the Federal government to create a national information
resource of patient-level health care data. HCUP databases provide data
beginning in 1988 and contain encounter-level information for all payers
compiled in a uniform format with privacy protections in place. HCUP
includes three nationwide databases, the Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS) and
the Kids’ Inpatient Database (KID), and the Nationwide Emergency Department
Sample (NEDS), and three types of State databases, the State Inpatient
Databases (SID), the State Ambulatory Surgery Databases (SASD), and the State
Emergency Department Databases (SEDD). More information on HCUP can be
found at http://www.hcup-us.ahrq.gov/home.jsp.

The MEPS is conducted to provide nationally
representative estimates of health care use, expenditures, sources of payment,
and insurance coverage for the U.S. civilian, non-institutionalized
population. MEPS is composed of three component surveys: the Household
Component (HC), the Medical Provider Component (MPC), and the Insurance
Component (IC). The Household Component is the core survey, and it
forms the basis for the MPC sample and part of the IC sample. The MEPS IC
collects data on health insurance plans obtained through employers and unions,
including the number and types of private insurance plans offered, employer
characteristics, premiums, and contributions by employers and employees.
More information on the MEPS is available at http://www.meps.ahrq.gov.

Applicants’ use of HCUP and/or MEPS data does not
preclude the use of secondary data sources or primary data collection.

Health Literacy

AHRQ encourages applicants to write Informed
Consent (IC) and HIPAA Authorization documents for research to be
understandable to all potential research participants, including those with low
levels of literacy and limited English proficiency. AHRQ recommends
that IC and Authorization documents be written in accordance with health
literacy principles, and that IC and Authorization documents be available in
multiple languages if potential research participants include individuals with
limited English proficiency. AHRQ also recommends adopting a process to verify
potential research participants’ understanding.

IC documents must provide information in language
understandable to potential participants (45
CFR 46.116). For covered entities under the Privacy Rule, authorization
documents must include core elements and required statements in 45
CFR 164.508(c) and must be written in plain language. The AHRQ Informed
Consent and Authorization Toolkit for Minimal Risk Research (http://www.ahrq.gov/fund/informedconsent/)
provides sample forms and guidance on adapting them, and also describes an
appropriate process for obtaining informed consent and authorization.

Consumer Products

All consumer products produced under an
AHRQ-funded grant should be appropriate for the target audience. This includes
individuals from diverse cultural, language, and literacy backgrounds.
Audience testing should be part of the development process. AHRQ’s Talking
Quality website (http://www.talkingquality.ahrq.gov/)
and AHRQ’s guide and checklist for developers and purchasers of health
information (IT) that is designed to be accessed and used by consumers (http://healthit.ahrq.gov and select Health
IT Tools and Resources) are resources applicants can use to ensure
appropriateness of consumer products.

Plan for Sharing Research Data
The precise content of the data-sharing plan will vary, depending on the data
being collected and how the investigator is planning to share the data.
Applicants who are planning to share data may wish to describe briefly the
expected schedule for data sharing; the format of the final dataset; the
documentation to be provided; whether or not any analytic tools also will be
provided; whether or not a data-sharing agreement will be required and, if so,
a brief description of such an agreement (including the criteria for deciding
who can receive the data and whether or not any conditions will be placed on
their use); and the mode of data sharing (e.g., under its own auspices by
mailing a disk or posting data on its institutional or personal website or
through a data archive or enclave). Investigators choosing to share under their
own auspices may wish to enter into a data-sharing agreement. References to
data sharing may also be appropriate in other sections of the application.

The
reasonableness of the data sharing plan or the rationale for not sharing
research data will be assessed by the reviewers. However, reviewers will not
factor the proposed data sharing plan into the determination of scientific
merit or the priority score.

Section
V. Application Review Information

1.
Criteria

Administrative Criteria: Upon
receipt, applications will be reviewed by AHRQ for completeness and
responsiveness.

Merit Review Criteria: Merit Review Criteria, as described below, will
be considered in the review process.

2. Review and Selection Process

Applications that are complete and responsive to the FOA will be
evaluated for scientific and technical merit by an appropriate peer review
group convened in accordance with standard AHRQ peer review procedures that are
described in 42 CFR Part 67, Subpart A. Incomplete and/or non-responsive
applications or applications not following instructions given in this FOA will not
be reviewed.

As part of the initial merit review, all applications
will:

Undergo a selection process in which only those
applications deemed to have the highest scientific merit will be discussed
and assigned a priority score.

Receive a written summary statement (critique of the
application).

Applications
submitted to AHRQ to support health services research and training are
evaluated for scientific and technical merit through the AHRQ peer review
system.

Overall Impact

Reviewers will provide an overall impact/priority
score to reflect their assessment of the likelihood for the project to exert a
sustained, powerful influence on the research field(s) involved, in
consideration of the following five scored review criteria, and additional
review criteria (as applicable for the project proposed).

Scored Review Criteria

Reviewers will consider each of the five review
criteria below in the determination of scientific and technical merit, and give
a separate score for each. An application does not need to be strong in
all categories to be judged likely to have major scientific impact. For
example, a project that by its nature is not innovative may be essential to
advance a field.

Training
Program and Environment

Are the objectives, design and direction of the
proposed research training program appropriate and responsive to AHRQ’s
mission, research priorities and portfolios of research?

Does the proposed program provide suitable didactic
and experiential training for pre-doctoral and/or post-doctoral students?

Is the quality of proposed course contents and
training experiences appropriate?

Does the application describe how the proposed
training grant fits into the institution’s overall graduate training
programs and how it is unique from other existing training programs,
including those supported by other Federal Agencies, such as NIH and HRSA?

Is the proposed program of training likely to ensure
that trainees will be prepared for successful and productive research careers?

Is a significant level of institutional commitment
to the program evident?

Has the applicant institution made attempts to form
viable internal and/or external partnerships that enhance their program?
Has the applicant institution formed viable and active partnerships with
users of research (in the formulation, execution, and/or
dissemination/translation of their research) to the extent it fits in with
program plans?

Program Faculty

Does the Training PD/PI have the scientific
background, expertise, and experience to provide strong leadership,
direction, management, and administration to the proposed institutional research
training program?

Does the Training PD/PI plan to commit sufficient time to the
program to ensure its success?

Is sufficient administrative and research training support provided
for the program?

Are sufficient numbers of experienced preceptors/mentors with
appropriate expertise and funding available to support the number and
level of trainees proposed in the application?

Do the preceptors/mentors have strong records as researchers,
including successful competition for research support in areas directly
related to the proposed research training program?

Do the preceptors/mentors have strong records of training pre-
and/or post doctorates?

Are mentoring plans and/or contracts with trainees included?

Program
Evaluation

Does the program evaluation plan
include both formative and outcome components related to both training program
and trainees? Do they involve independent, external input?

Is feedback from current and former trainees
going to be used to help identify strengths and weaknesses and to provide
suggestions for program improvements?

Is the evaluation plan adequate and
sufficiently detailed to track career outcomes of trainees and determine if the
program is successful? Does it include a system for tracking participants for
at least a 10-year period following program completion?

Is the past research training
record of the program, the Program Director, and designated
preceptors/mentors appropriate and demonstrated?

Is there evidence of successful
completion of training (e.g., pre-doctoral students earning Ph.D.s,
clinical post-doctoral students completing at least two years of research
training? Is there evidence of productive scientific and applied
research careers among former students?

Does the
evaluation plan include appropriate outcome measures, such measures as
publications, grant/contract research support, awards, promotions, use of
research by stakeholders?

For competing renewal applications: Are there plans
to make changes that improve program performance and the assessment of
outcomes?
Does the summation of their past evaluations adequately describe
information requested in Section IV? Has there been continued,
demonstrated evidence of success and quality improvement in the programs
over time?

Trainee Candidates

Are the recruiting procedures, trainee selection
criteria, and retention strategies appropriate and well defined? Are
there advertising plans or other effective strategies to recruit
high-quality trainees?

Do plans (and for renewals, past experiences) demonstrate
a commitment to recruiting students from outside of the applicant’s
academic institution or affiliate organizations? Do the plans (and
for renewals, past experiences) demonstrate a commitment to training
students for careers outside of the applicant’s academic institution or
affiliate organizations?

Are the quality of the applicant pool and plans for
the selection and retention of individuals appointed to the training
program appropriate? Specifically, what is the size and quality of
the applicant pool?

Are other underrepresented groups such as individuals with
disabilities and individuals from socially, culturally, economically, or
educationally disadvantaged backgrounds represented in the applicant pool?

Training in the Responsible Conduct of
Research

Taking into account the specific characteristics of the
institutional research training program, level of trainee experience, and the
particular circumstances of the trainee, the reviewers will address the
following questions.

Does the plan include a sufficiently broad selection
of subject matter, such as conflict of interest, authorship, data
management, human subjects and animal use, laboratory safety?

Does the plan adequately describe how faculty will
participate in the instruction?

Does the plan meet the minimum requirements for RCR,
i.e., eight contact hours of instruction every four years?

Plans and past record will be rated as acceptable or unacceptable, and the summary statement will provide the consensus of
the review committee.

2.A.
Additional Review Criteria

In addition to the above criteria,
the following items will be addressed and considered in the determination of
scientific merit and the rating.

Degree of Responsiveness:How well does the application address the purpose and
objectives of this FOA? How responsive is the application to the special
eligibility criteria, including the project requirements, noted in the FOA?

Budget and Period of Support: Is
the proposed budget reasonable and is the requested period of support
appropriate in relation to the proposed research?

Protection of Human Subjects
from Research Risk: The involvement of human subjects and
protections from research risk relating to their participation in the proposed
research will be assessed. See the “Human Subjects Sections” of the PHS398
Research Training Program Plan component of the SF424 (R&R).

Privacy and Security Protections for
Patients: The resources and processes to be used
to address privacy and security issues in the development and implementation of
the intervention will be assessed.

Selection
Process

Applications submitted in response to this funding
opportunity will compete for available funds with all other recommended
applications. The following will be considered in making funding decisions:

Scientific merit of the proposed project as determined by peer
review

Availability of funds

Planned recruitment of underrepresented applicant trainees

Relevance to goals and objectives of the FOA

Demonstrated unique relevance to AHRQ

AHRQ Portfolio and geographic balance

Partnership formation

Note: AHRQ will generally make only one award per
applicant institution and its affiliate components and organizations.

2.B.
Additional Review Considerations

Not applicable.

2.C. Resource Sharing Plan(s))

Data Confidentiality

The AHRQ confidentiality statute, 42 USC 299c-3(c),
requires that information that is obtained in the course of AHRQ-supported
activities and that identifies individuals or establishments be used only for
the purpose for which it was supplied. Information that is obtained in the course of
AHRQ-supported activities and that identifies an individual may be published or
released only with the consent of the individual who supplied the information
or is described in it. There
are civil monetary penalties for violation of the confidentiality provision of
the AHRQ statute. 42 USC 299c-3(d). In the Human Subjects section of the
application, applicants must describe procedures for ensuring the
confidentiality of the identifying information to be collected. The
description of the procedures should include a discussion of who will be
permitted access to this information, both raw data and machine readable files,
and how personal identifiers and other identifying or identifiable data will be
restricted and safeguarded. Identifiable patient health information
collected by grantees under this FOA will also be obtained and managed in
accordance with the HIPAA Privacy Rule, 45 CFR Parts 160 and 164. These regulations
serve to limit the disclosure of personally identifiable patient information by
covered entities and define when and how such information can be disclosed
e.g., to researchers. Thus, health care plans ordinarily will require
either patient authorization for disclosures of identifiable information to be
made to researchers or waivers of such authorizations obtained from an IRB or
Privacy Board (defined in the regulations), which will involve review to ensure
that identifiable health information will be appropriately safeguarded by the
investigators. The DHHS Office of Civil Rights is the enforcement body
for this regulation. Additional information about the regulations, their
implementation, and alternative methods of permissible disclosures to researchers
(limited data sets with data use agreements, de-identified data sets, data
about deceased persons, and data use to develop protocols) can be obtained
from: http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/hipaa/

The grantee should ensure that computer systems
containing confidential data have a level and scope of security that equals or
exceeds that established by the HIPAA Security Rules if applicable (see HIPAA
website in prior paragraph) and that established by the Office of Management
and Budget (OMB) in OMB Circular No. A-130, Appendix III - Security of Federal
Automated Information Systems. The National Institute of Standards and
Technology (NIST) has published several implementation guides for this
circular. They are: An Introduction to Computer Security: The NIST Handbook;
Generally Accepted Principals and Practices for Securing Information Technology
Systems; and Guide for Developing Security Plans for Information Technology
Systems. The circular and guides are available on the web at http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/nistpubs/800-12/. The
applicability and intended means of applying these confidentiality and security
standards to subcontractors and vendors, if any, should be addressed in the
application.

Sharing Research Resources: Rights in Data

Unless otherwise provided in grant awards, AHRQ grantees
may copyright, or seek patents for, as appropriate, final and interim products
and materials developed in whole or in part with AHRQ support, including, but
not limited to, methodological tools, measures, software with documentation,
literature searches, and analyses. Such copyrights and patents are subject to
a royalty-free, non-exclusive, and irrevocable AHRQ license to reproduce,
publish, use or disseminate for any purpose consistent with AHRQ’s statutory
responsibilities and to authorize others to do so for any purpose consistent
with AHRQ’s statutory responsibilities. In accordance with its legislative
dissemination mandate, AHRQ purposes may include, subject to statutory
confidentiality protections, making project materials, databases, results, and
algorithms available for verification or replication by other researchers. In
addition, subject to AHRQ budget constraints, final products may be made
available to the health care community and the public by AHRQ or its agents if
such distribution would significantly increase access to a product and thereby
produce substantial or valuable public health benefits. Ordinarily, to
accomplish distribution, AHRQ publicizes research findings but relies on
grantees to publish research results in peer-reviewed journals and to market
grant-supported products. AHRQ's Office of Communications and Knowledge
Transfer (OCKT) wishes to be consulted in advance of publication in order to
coordinate announcements of new AHRQ-supported research results with other AHRQ
dissemination activities. Important legal rights and requirements
applicable to AHRQ grantees are set out or referenced in AHRQ's grants
regulation at 42 CFR Part 67, Subpart A (available in libraries and from the
GPO's website at http://www.gpoaccess.gov/cfr/index.html)
which incorporates additional applicable provisions on Rights in Data,
including 45 CFR Part 74 and 37 CFR Part 401.

After the peer review of the application is completed, the PD/PI will be
able to access his or her Summary Statement (written critique) via the NIH eRA Commons.

If the application is under consideration for funding,
AHRQ will request "Just-In-Time" information from the
applicant. Just-In-Time information generally consists of information on
other support, any additional information necessary to address administrative
issues, and certification of IRB approval of the project's proposed use of
human subjects. For details, applicants may refer to the "AHRQ
Revised Policy for Institutional Review Board (IRB) Review of Human Subjects
Protocols in Grant Applications" (http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/not-hs-00-003.html).

Once all administrative and programmatic issues have been resolved, a formal
notification in the form of the Notice of Award (NoA) will be generated
via email notification from the awarding component to the grantee business
official at the applicant organization. The NOA signed by the AHRQ grants
management officer is the authorizing document.

Selection of an application for award is not an
authorization to begin performance. Any costs incurred before receipt of the
NOA are at the recipient’s risk. These costs may be reimbursed only to the
extent considered allowable pre-award costs. See also Section IV.5., “Funding
Restrictions.”

Any application
awarded in response to this FOA will be subject to the DUNS, CCR Registration,
and Transparency Act requirements as noted on the as noted on the AHRQ web site
at http://www.ahrq.gov/fund/postawrd.htm#terms.

2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements

All AHRQ grant awards are subject to AHRQ’s grants regulations at 42 CFR
Part 67, Subpart A, and are subject to the requirements of the HHS Grants
Policy Statement that are applicable based on the recipient type and the
purpose of this award (see http://www.ahrq.gov/fund/hhspolicy.htm).

As necessary,
additional Terms and Conditions will be incorporated into the notice of award.

Grantees will be
required to submit the Non-Competing Grant Progress Report (PHS 2590).
The annual progress report must include Section 2.2.6 items A through F as
described in the general PHS form 2590 instructions, as well as sections G
through J as described in Section 5.1.4 of the 2590 instructions, and Part 6 of
the 2590 instructions entitled, “Additional Instructions for Preparing a
Progress Report for an Institutional Research Training Grant.” For
details regarding progress report submission, refer to http://www.ahrq.gov/fund/noncomp.htm.
If instructions on the AHRQ website are different from the PHS form 2590
instructions, follow the instructions on the AHRQ website.

The Progress Report is to include descriptive and evaluative comments on
both completed activities and plans for the remainder of that year, including
any changes foreseen in the future. At a minimum, the reports will
include descriptive comments on: progress to date measured against
project aims; methodological changes implemented; key preliminary findings;
significant problems and resolutions; inclusion of priority populations; and
project related publications, presentations, and dissemination activities.

Please note:
The Research Performance Progress Report (RPPR) is a Federal-wide progress
report which will eventually replace the PHS 2950. Grantees will be required
to follow the new progress report guidelines when they become available.

Federal Financial Reports (FFRs; SF 425) are required annually by AHRQ
for ALL grant programs as described in the HHS Grants Policy Statement (see http://www.ahrq.gov/fund/hhspolicy.htm).
AHRQ implementation of the FFR retains a financial reporting period that
coincides with the budget period of a particular project. However, the
due date for annual FFRs will be 90 days after the end of the calendar quarter
in which the budget period ends. Note that this is a change in due dates
of annual FFRs and may provide up to 60 additional days to report, depending
upon when the budget period end date falls within a calendar quarter. For
example, if the budget period ends 4/30/2012, the annual FFR is due 9/30/2012
(90 days after the end of the calendar quarter of 6/30/2012). Submit the Final Federal Financial
Report (SF 425) as a PDF file to: GFFR@ahrq.hhs.gov.
AHRQ is NOT currently able to accept FFRs electronically via the eRA Commons.

Final Progress and
Federal Financial Reports

A Final Progress Report
and final Federal Financial Report are required when an award ends.
Evaluation results should be included as part of the Final Progress Report.

Trainee Reporting Requirements

Institutions must submit a completed
Statement of Appointment (PHS Form 2271) for each trainee appointed or
reappointed to the institutional research training grant. This form must be
completed at the beginning of the initial appointment and annually thereafter.
An appointment or reappointment may begin any time during the budget period,
but not before the budget period start date of the grant year. AHRQ requires
the use of xTrain for the electronic submission of Appointment Forms and
Termination Notices. More information on xTrain is available at xTrain (eRA
Commons). No funds may be provided in support of the trainee until the
Statement of Appointment form submitted to and accepted by AHRQ.

A notarized statement verifying possession of permanent residency
documentation must be submitted with the Statement of Appointment (Form PHS
2271). Individuals with a Conditional Permanent Resident status must first
meet full (non-conditional) Permanent Residency requirements before receiving
support.

Participant Termination Notice: Within 30 days of the end of the total
support period for each participant, the institution must submit a Termination
Notice (PHS
Form 416-7) via xTrain for each participant appointed for eight weeks or more. Trainees with service
payback requirements must notify the AHRQ of any change in address and submit
Annual Payback Activities Certification Forms (PHS 6031-1)
until the payback service obligation is satisfied. A completed Payback
Agreement Form (PHS 6031)
must be submitted for each post-doctoral trainee in his or her first 12 months
of support.

Other Reporting
Requirements

In carrying out its
stewardship of human resource-related programs, the AHRQ may request
information essential to an assessment of the effectiveness of this
Program. Accordingly, recipients are hereby notified that they may be
contacted after the completion of this award for periodic updates on various
aspects of their employment history, publications, support from research grants
or contracts, honors and awards, professional activities, and other information
helpful in evaluating the impact of the research training program.

Trainees are encouraged to submit reports
of their findings for publication to the journals of their choice. For each
publication that results from a Trainee’s research, AHRQ support must be
acknowledged by a footnote in language similar to the following: “This
investigation was supported by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
(AHRQ) under Grant Award (number). Its contents are solely the responsibility
of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the
AHRQ.”

The Federal
Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 (Transparency Act),
includes a requirement for awardees of Federal grants to report information
about first-tier sub-awards and executive compensation under Federal assistance
awards issued in FY2011 or later. All awardees of applicable grants and
cooperative agreements are required to report to the Federal Sub-award
Reporting System (FSRS) available at https://www.fsrs.gov/ on all sub-awards over $25,000. See the AHRQ Grant Post Award Management web
site at http://www.ahrq.gov/fund/postawrd.htm#terms for additional information on this reporting requirement.

Section
VII. Agency Contacts

We encourage your inquiries
concerning this funding opportunity and welcome the opportunity to answer
questions from potential applicants. Inquiries may be written or by email, and fall
into three areas: scientific/research (program), peer review, and financial or
grants management issues.

1. Scientific/Research
Contact(s):

Direct your questions about general FOA issues, including information on
the inclusion of priority populations to:

Federal regulations at 45 CFR Part 46 require that
applications and proposals involving human subjects research must be evaluated
in accordance with those regulations, with reference to the risks to the
subjects, the adequacy of protection against these risks, the potential
benefits of the research to the subjects and others, and the importance of the
knowledge gained or to be gained ( http://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/humansubjects/guidance/45cfr46.html).

The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS)
"Standards for Privacy of Individually Identifiable Health Information", regulation was mandated by the Health Insurance Portability and
Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996 which governs the protection of individually
identifiable health information. It is administered and enforced by the
DHHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR). The OCR website (http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/) provides information
on the Privacy Rule, including a complete Regulation Text and a set of decision
tools that may be used to determine whether a researcher is a staff member of a
covered entity.

Access to Research Data through the Freedom of Information Act:

OMB Circular A-110 provides access to certain research
data developed with Federal support through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552, in certain circumstances. Data that are (1) first
produced in a project that is supported in whole or in part with Federal funds
and (2) cited publicly and officially by a Federal agency in support of an
action that has the force and effect of law (i.e., a regulation or
administrative order) may be accessed through FOIA. If no Federal action is
taken having the force and effect of law in reliance upon an AHRQ-supported
research project, the underlying data are not subject to this disclosure
requirement. Furthermore, even if a Federal regulatory action is taken in
reliance on AHRQ-supported research data, disclosure of such data is limited in
accordance with the AHRQ confidentiality statute, 42 USC 299c-3(c). NIH has
provided general related guidance at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/policy/a110/a110_guidance_dec1999.htm which does not include discussion of the exception applicable to confidential
identifiable data collected under AHRQ's authorities.

Should applicants wish to place data collected under this
FOA in a public archive, which can provide protections for the data (e.g., as
required by confidentiality provisions of the statute applicable to
AHRQ-supported projects, 42 USC 299c-3(c)) and manage the distribution of
non-identifiable data for an indefinite period of time, they may. The
application should include a description of any archiving plan in the study
design and include information about this in the budget justification section
of the application. In addition, applicants should consider how to structure
informed consent statements or other human subject protection procedures to
permit or restrict disclosures of identifiable data, as warranted.

Healthy People 2020:

The Public Health Service (PHS) is committed to achieving
the health promotion and disease prevention objectives of "Healthy People
2020," a PHS-led national activity for setting health improvement
priorities for the United States. AHRQ encourages applicants to submit grant
applications with relevance to the specific objectives of this initiative.
Potential applicants may obtain a copy of "Healthy People 2020" at http://www.health.gov/healthypeople.

Authority and Regulations:

This program is described in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance at http://www.cfda.gov/ and is not subject to
the intergovernmental review requirements of Executive Order 12372 or Health
Systems Agency review. Awards are made under the authority of 42 USC 299 et
seq. and, 42 CFR Part 67 and in accordance with 45 CFR Parts 74 or 92 and
other referenced applicable statutes and regulations. All awards are
subject to the terms and conditions, cost principles, and other considerations
described in the HHS Grants Policy Statement. The HHS Grants Policy Statement
can be found at http://www.ahrq.gov/fund/hhspolicy.htm.

The PHS strongly encourages all grant recipients to
provide a smoke-free workplace and discourage the use of all tobacco products.
In addition, Public Law 103-227, the Pro-Children Act of 1994, prohibits
smoking in certain facilities (or in some cases, any portion of a facility) in
which regular or routine education, library, day care, health care, or early
childhood development services are provided to children. This is consistent
with the Public Health Service mission to protect and advance the physical and
mental health of the American people.